Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-10-07

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The chart below shows the number of households in the US by their annual income in 2007, 2011 and 2015.

Summarize the information by selecting and reporting the main features and make comparisons where relevant.

Student answer (Band 5.0)

The given bar chart illustrates the amount of households in US through their yearly income in three different years 2007,2011 and 2015

Overall, the people's with more then 100,000$ income were the most in each year. Meanwhile the huseholds with income of 75,000$ to 99,999$ was lowest in count in all three years.

The households with the annual income of less than 25,000$ Were around 25 millions in 2007, than they gradually went almost around 29 millions in count. However, by the arrival of 2015, it dip to 26 millions. The households with income of 50,000$ to 74,999$ stayed stable in all three different years, with count of 22 millions.

The households with most highest income of more then 100,000$ were at the top in the 2007 with 29 millions in count and got a slight dip

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You identify two relevant overall features: the $100,000-or-more group is among the largest, while the $75,000–$99,999 group is the smallest. You also report the stable middle-income group and give some figures. However, the overview is inaccurate in saying the highest-income group was largest in every year: in 2011, the $25,000–$49,999 group was slightly larger. The account is also incomplete and ends mid-sentence after “got a slight dip,” leaving the 2011 and 2015 figures for that group unreported and omitting the $25,000–$49,999 and $75,000–$99,999 trends. The less-than-$25,000 figure for 2015 is also understated. The response is 13 words below the required minimum. Select the main comparisons accurately and complete the summary.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a basic, useful structure: an introduction, an overview, and paragraphs describing selected income groups. This makes the general purpose understandable. However, progression is limited because the final paragraph stops mid-sentence, and several categories are not covered, so the comparison does not develop into a complete account. Linking is also repetitive and sometimes awkward: “Meanwhile,” “However,” and “The households…” do not always make the relationship between points clear. Group related figures together and use a complete final paragraph to compare the remaining income bands. Clearer sequencing—overview first, then the main changes across all categories—would make the organisation more coherent.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use relevant task vocabulary such as “bar chart,” “annual income,” “stable,” and “millions,” so the reader can generally identify the subject and trends. However, the range is limited, and several word choices or collocations are inaccurate or unnatural, including “amount of households,” “people’s with,” “got a slight dip,” and “most highest income.” Spelling errors such as “huseholds” and “then” for “than” also reduce precision. Use “number of households,” “households earning,” and verbs such as “rose,” “remained stable,” or “fell slightly” to describe the data. Accurate income-band labels and consistent use of “households” would make the report clearer and more appropriately formal.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt some longer sentences, including “The households with the annual income of less than 25,000$ Were around 25 millions in 2007, than they gradually went almost around 29 millions in count.” However, errors in sentence construction, verb forms, agreement, and punctuation are frequent enough to make parts difficult to follow. Examples include the missing comma in the opening list of years, “it dip” instead of “it dipped,” and “the households … was lowest,” where the plural subject requires a plural verb. The final sentence is incomplete, which also leaves its grammatical structure unresolved. Practise writing complete sentences with a clear subject and verb, and check tense consistency and singular/plural agreement when reporting changes over time.

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